- SETI investigating radio signal from a star system 94 light-years away – “A star system 94 light-years away is in the spotlight as a possible candidate for intelligent inhabitants, thanks to the discovery of a radio signal by a group of Russian astronomers.”
- A 3.2 million year old mystery: Did Lucy fall from a tree? – “Lucy sustained many such fractures, the scientists concluded, from her ankles to her jaw. The fractures suggest that she came down feet-first and then tumbled forward, holding out her hands in a futile hope of protecting herself.”
- 48 queer and feminist books coming out in fall of 2016 – I am more than a little excited to read Margaret Atwood’s new book. From Mary.
- An outpouring of support for a little girl who loves bugs – “At her new school, Sophia’s love for bugs has seen her branded as a “weirdo,” Spencer said.”
Reading up on the SETI item, there’s good cause to be skeptical.
1. The amount of power it would take to send the detected transmission in all directions as a broadcast would be hundreds of times the power the earth receives from the sun.
2. 94 light years is far enough away that hypothetical aliens couldn’t have detected OUR faint radio signals and replied with a directional communication yet. We’ve got another 60 or so years before that can happen.
3. SETI has measured this star 39 times and only once gotten a signal interesting enough to warrant further investigation.
Unfortunately it sounds like that signal that some people think is coming from an advanced alien civilization, isn’t the real thing.
The internet’s going wild about a SETI signal from aliens. Scientists aren’t convinced.
http://www.vox.com/2016/8/30/12709286/seti-signal-aliens-hd164595
Is it aliens? …probably not. But just in case, stay tuned in 188 years!